What does overweight mean?
Overweight is an adjective describing someone or something that has more weight than is considered healthy, appropriate, or permitted. In medical and public-health contexts, it commonly refers to a person whose body weight is above a recommended range, although its meaning does not by itself establish a diagnosis of obesity. The word can also describe luggage, freight, vehicles, and loads that exceed a stated limit. “Slightly overweight,” “seriously overweight,” and “overweight baggage” are typical pairings. As a verb, overweight means to weigh more than expected or allowed, as in a statement that a parcel is overweight. In broader figurative use, it can describe something that has become excessive in scale or importance. Although “fat” may sound blunt and “obese” has a more clinical definition, overweight occupies a middle ground: it identifies a comparison between an actual weight and a standard without necessarily making a precise medical classification.
Having more body weight than is considered healthy, or exceeding a specified or expected weight.
"Her doctor said that losing a few pounds would keep her from being classified as overweight."
Common in medical, fitness, and everyday contexts; it may be less categorical and potentially less blunt than describing someone as obese.
To weigh more than a stated, permitted, or expected amount.
"The parcel weighed four kilograms and was overweight for the postal service."
Most often used for baggage, freight, loads, and other measurable objects; it can also occur in broader figurative senses.
Overweight is a relative term: it depends on a person, object, or stated limit, whereas obesity is a specific medical condition involving excess body fat.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does overweight come from?
Overweight is an English compound formed from over-, meaning “excessively” or “beyond a limit,” and weight. The compound was used for goods and loads before its now-familiar application to human body weight became dominant. Its modern health-related sense developed as medical and public-health discussion increasingly distinguished categories of body weight; it is related to weight, weigh, and weighty, all of which share the same basic idea of heaviness.
Related word forms
How overweight is actually used
In health contexts, overweight is often used as a less categorical alternative to obesity, though both may concern people. It can also describe luggage, vehicles, loads, or other objects that exceed an allowed limit.
Easily confused with overweight
Overweight means having more body weight than is considered healthy, whereas obese is a clinical term for a condition involving excessive body fat.